Posts from Make Ahead

When we were putting together a week of fresh radish recipes, we knew two things: One, we wanted to include something from April Bloomfield's lovely new book, and two, kimchi had to be involved somewhere, somehow. This rather amazing salad is a two-for-one deal, and it's a good one.

Before you Southerners read this and start thinking, "Are you kidding me? Who doesn't know how to make sweet tea?" — hear me out. I am Florida-born and Georgia-raised, but when I moved to California, one of the first things I noticed was that no one drinks sweet tea out here! I always keep a pitcher ready in my fridge, and my friends inevitably ask me, "How do you make this?"

Today you're going to find out how. Whether you've never heard of sweet tea or have only tried the bottled version, this is a recipe you're going to want to make this summer. Southerners, chime in here with your best advice!

In the social circle of patterns, I am pretty sure ombré is Queen Bee — the Regina George, the Blair Waldorf, the Khaleesi. It is almost too cool for school. And I'm just a little polka dot hanging out with my striped and plaid farmer friends, because my heavens, I could never pull off ombré hair or an ombré garment. Ombré is reserved for the cool, edgy people that can get away with other edgy things.

But ombré cake! Ooh, that I could do. Ombré carrots! I could do that, too. Ombré popsicles! Yes, those I can definitely do. And so can you.

Let's say you've conquered the raw kale salad. Maybe you massage it, maybe you don't, but it's definitely no surprise anymore to sit down to a big bowl of raw, dark greens and chow down. But perhaps now you're a little bored. You want something more — a recipe to impress your kale-loving friends and shake you out of your salad stupor this summer. Smoky and garlicky, studded with chunks of grilled bread, this grilled kale salad is it.

You know why pudding pops are so great? Because you get all of the flavor and creaminess and deliciousness of pudding, but you don’t ever have to worry about that gross skin that forms on top of them. That skin! Will my nightmares about George’s Pudding Skin Singles ever end? Probably not for a while, since I’ve spent the last two weeks making pudding, but trust me — it’s worth it in the name of these popsicles.

Here's the drink I'll be sipping on all summer long: Thai iced tea! I used to reserve this refreshing drink for combatting the heat when I ordered spicy curries at Thai restaurants, but not anymore. I recently discovered that making your own Thai iced tea is surprisingly easy.

Pasta salad can mean a lot of things to a lot of people; down South, we've certainly made "macaroni salad" our own. Heirloom recipes sometimes include onions, celery, hard-boiled eggs, pickles, or sweet relish, and you can always count on a heaping dollop of mayonnaise, of course!

What I love about summer is the fruit. There are peaches and plums for pies, nectarines for dribbling down your chin, apricots for tarts, cherries for snacks, and all sorts of berries for breakfast — plus other melons, like cantaloupe and honeydew, to wrap ham around. But what other fruit offers a crunchy snack, a juice for drinking (with or without a boozy booster), seeds for spitting contests, and a big round shape for greasing and throwing around the pool, lake, or ocean (have you played greased pig yet this summer)?

It's the watermelon. When it's good, it's really good, and needs little else to completely satisfy a craving for a cool, sweet treat.

It's hot. The kind of hot that makes you not even want to go outside. The kind of hot that makes you consider a mesh top as work-appropriate attire. It's OK, though. I got your chill pill. It's a cold brew French press recipe that makes the best iced coffee, and it can be your new morning breeze.

If you are determined to kick the coffee shop habit and make your own iced coffee at home, flavored the way you like it, strong and heady and above all cold, I'm here to help. Here is how you make the best iced coffee you've ever had.